The entire governing body of Saltley School in Birmingham stood down after
Ofsted branded the comprehensive "inadequate"

Governors at one of the schools named at the centre of the "Trojan Horse" inquiry into alleged Islamic extremism in the classroom have resigned en masse, it was announced today.

The entire governing body of Saltley School in Birmingham stood down after Ofsted branded the comprehensive "inadequate" as part of a city-wide investigation this month.

In a statement, it was claimed that the inspection process was "flawed" and had been a "disservice to students".

The watchdog's report said standards of governance at Saltley - one of six schools placed in special measures by Ofsted - was poor and many governors "refuse to accept that the school is in a state of crisis".

It said the governing body interfered with the day-to-day running of the school and "undermines the work of senior leaders".

Inspectors told how they had also "paid private investigators to interrogate the emails of senior staff". Governors also spent £55,000 "unnecessarily" on the services of a private solicitor, paid for meals in restaurants and spent £12,000 on a consultancy service that failed to improve standards of education.

It also emerged that the governing body - which usually contains around 15 people - had six vacancies when it was visited by Ofsted.

But the school's statement said Ofsted failed to make it clear whether they thought the school "did or did not have an Islamic agenda".

The governors said: "This whole process has been a disservice to students, their families, hardworking and committed teachers and staff in the school.

"Though we have challenged the way the inspection was carried out and the conclusions it came to, the governing body has no resources to take this further, therefore we have decided to resign in protest."

As part of a three-month investigation into Birmingham schools, Ofsted claimed some of those involved promoted “culture of fear and intimidation” and failing to keep pupils safe from risks of radicalisation.

The education watchdog outlined claims that schools had fallen into the hands of bullying governors who sought to narrow the curriculum and alienate non-Muslims.

But the conclusions have been condemned by many of the schools at the centre of the investigation, including the Park View Educational Trust, which runs three academies placed into special measures by the watchdog.

It has pledged to take legal action to overturn Ofsted's findings, saying the regulator had "dehumanised" the local community.

Ofsted said it had "full confidence in the judgments of both its previous and present inspections".

The council said it was already working with Saltley and the Department for Education to put in place an interim executive board in charge of the school.

A spokesman said: "We share the commitment of the outgoing governors to the success of young people in Saltley school and we are very determined to see this school return to being the good school it once was as quickly as possible."